Maryland independent. [volume] (Port Tobacco, Md.) 1874-current, 1887-03-04
Magpies and RObber Birds.

IN
1--WE have hundreds of them in New
Mexico. They are on very excellent
terms with the cattle. A flock is almost
always to bo'een in company with a herd. /
The magpies will aIight on a steers back /
and go all over him, picking of insects.
He never mOlesIs the birds, except when
they poke their bills too close to his eye
balls. The birds are very familiar and
easily caught In our country the mag
pic is a great pct lie Iearls to talk, and
san speak in English as plainly as any
body. He is far superior to the parrot
rs an imtator, and can easily be taught
to say almost anything lie will sustain
his part of a conversation with yigor.
While hopping around seemingly too
busy to notice what is going on he will
often astonish Q whole croud by breaking
out with some sage and fitting remark,
and when he is at loss for words he will
hold the attention Of his auditors by his
Glib chatter and saucy mimicry of every
noise he hears. We don't think he's
worth keeping unless he can talk, and it
is rare to find magpio that can't learn
how. These birds are great company in
the mountains; miles and miles away
from the busy world.
"The American magpies are very much
like their European cousins. There is a
tradition in the far west that years ago a
foreign ship arrived at San Francisco
with few magpies aboard. 1t is said
they were set free on reaching shore and
made their way to the interior. Reach
ing the Mexican ranges, they located
there, and multiplied till they have be-
come very humorous, and are now found
all along the Rocky mountain chain
even far to the north.
awe have another curious bird out il
the mining and grazing country. 4
small, grayish chap, as sly as fox. HI
is called the 'robber.' Leave a piece o
meat or bisolit on the cabin table anC
he is sure to steal it. have seen thes
birds sit on the window sill, while w
were eating cur dinner, plumng them
selves as if no one was near. But as 500
as we turned our back on piece of mea
. it was taken, and the robbcr' was out
sight. This cunning bird will actuall
pick the food of ones plate, and in sue
a mysterious way that one is puzzled
know what has become of it. We nev'
kill the robbsr' birds. They are infnit
ly amusing anl harmless, but they al
the most aud hious thieves on earth"
A'Dog fF 9sFSy bays on Water.
At the last meeting Of the French S.
ciety of Biology DIR. Laborde read ,
interesting paper, which throws son
light on the complicated problem of j
anition raised by the fast of Merlatt
On this occasion, however, the profile
concerned dogs and not men. One do
weighing thirty-one pounds, condemne
to complete fast, died on the twentiet
day. Another of the same weight an
race, but which was allowed to drin
water, was still brisk and alive on Il
twentieth day. The experiment W;
continued up to forty days, and migt
have been pushed longer, the dog bein
in fair state of health. On the twer
lieth day the dog that died weighed onl
four pounds; the other one weighe
nineteen pounds, and from that momer
it lost less in comparison every day, ii
on the forieth day it weighed fftee
and one fourth pounds. During IL
fo,ty days it drank nearly eight pounc
of water, drinking less and less as Il
fast continued. As regards the questio
of the resumption of nourishment, tt
dog settled it by eating two pounds an
half of soup and two pounds of mes
without any unpleasant consequences
and it is now in frs, class condition.